


Mixed Messages

by flootzavut



Series: Lie to NCIS [39]
Category: JAG (mentioned), Lie to Me (TV), NCIS
Genre: Awesome Foursome, Crossover, CxK, F/F, F/M, Foursome, Friendship, GxC, GxJ, GxK, I think I got all the ships this touches on, JxC, JxK, Kate Lives, Kibbs, LMAO, Lie to NCIS, M/M, Multi, Multi-shipping, UST, foursomeverse, mixed POVs, queer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-11
Updated: 2017-04-16
Packaged: 2018-10-17 15:17:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10596699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flootzavut/pseuds/flootzavut
Summary: Gillian and Cal are invited to an event Kate and Gibbs are required to attend, and it turns out to be a confusing evening all round...Crib notes for the fandom blindhere.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [PhoenixRising360](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PhoenixRising360/gifts).



> For suggesting one of the many scenarios that pop up for the first (ish) time in this story ❤️
> 
> I don't really know if Gibbs is entitled to wear a uniform by this point, but all things considered I am happy to bend reality because, ya know, Gibbs in uniform. So there ;p Not even sorry!
> 
> (I'm also kinda messing with Chegwidden's timeline to have him in uniform, but it's the tiniest allusion and I couldn't resist bringing him in as an extra ❤️)
> 
> I imagine regular readers are sick to the back teeth of my crib notes, so I'll just reiterate that they're available [here](http://archiveofourown.org/series/334084).

* * *

_**Mixed Messages** _

* * *

 

"Fuck me." Cal meant to say it quietly (well, he didn't mean to say it  _out_   _loud_  at all) but Gillian throws a cocked eyebrow at him, so evidently he wasn't very successful. Then she follows his gaze to where he's looking (staring - gawping - damn near drooling...) and grins when she sees Gibbs strolling towards them, all dapper and handsome in his formal dress blues.

"He does look pretty delicious."

Of course, Foster has no interest in helping Cal out. She hasn't said anything aloud besides the occasional tease, but he knows she's aware of his... crush. He's not sure she realises how bad things have got, or that his cock just attempted to leap out of his trousers.

He edges behind her. He's not thrilled by the notion of her realising he's got a very literal hard on for Gibbs, but between her noticing and Gibbs noticing, he'd much rather it was her.

Dapper and handsome is actually a wild understatement. Pretty delicious is closer; Gibbs dressed head to toe in form-fitting red-edged blue with a chest full of ribbons and his hat stowed neatly under one arm?  _God_. It's bloody unfair, is what it is.

Gibbs smiles warmly at them both, shakes hands with Cal (Cal's grateful Gibbs' gloves will get in the way of noticing Cal's suddenly sweaty palms) and kisses Gillian on the cheek, then stands there at attention looking... looking fucking  _edible_.

"Kate's on her way."

"You look very smart," says Gillian, mistress of understatement.

Gibbs smiles, very nearly shy for a moment ( _welcome to the club, mate_ ) as he tugs at the formal jacket. "Bit outta practice wearing this getup," he admits gruffly.

"It doesn't show."

There's a moment of silence. Cal sort of feels like he's supposed to contribute to the conversation at this point, but he's fairly sure that saying 'You look bloody hot' to Gibbs is not the kind of thing he should be admitting aloud, and he can't seem to find any other thoughts at all.

Fortunately, Kate chooses that moment to appear, which leads to another round of hellos and kissed cheeks, and saves Cal from saying anything he might live to regret.


	2. Chapter 2

Kate doesn't think she's ever seen Cal look quite so dumbfounded as he did when he was staring at Gibbs in dress blues. In fairness, she can understand it. She still remembers the first time she saw Gibbs all Marine'd up, and that was just Charlies. The formal uniform is... well, she kinda wonders if there's a chance he'd consider wearing it around the house now and then, so she can drool privately and not have to share or be polite to anyone else, and possibly peel him out of it very slowly and make love to him when he's wearing nothing but his cover.

Still, even though she's noticed Cal's crush before (it isn't exactly subtle), she'd been amused by his reaction. She hadn't expected him - even in the face of parade-ready Gibbs - to go from not-very-subtle crush to openly ogling without even trying to hide it. Or maybe he was trying to hide it, and was just doing a very bad job?

Of the three of them, she thinks she and Gillian were positively restrained. It isn't the time or the place this evening, but she will definitely be teasing Cal about this at a later date.

They do all look good, if she says so herself. Gibbs maybe has the edge (she thinks it's those white gloves, there's just... something about them), but Cal looks pretty darn handsome in black tie (she'd tell him, only she thinks he already has enough to deal with on the confusion front without her adding to it - she'll save that for later, too). Kate knows she looks good - three people can't all fake that degree of admiration so perfectly and so much in sync - and when she's not enjoying Gibbs and appreciating Cal, she's trying very hard not to actively ogle Gillian.

They've never been out together to a formal event before. While Kate never exactly got to the point of being used to Gillian naked, never took it for granted, she did (mostly) stop goggling like a teenaged boy. Gillian in a floor-length gown with her hair in an elegant chignon, though? God, Kate had to swallow back the temptation to tell Gillian she looks good enough to eat. All that pale, smooth skin, all those adorable freckles, Kate wants to touch and stroke and kiss. (And possibly just bury her face in Gill's cleavage.)

She keeps thinking she's got over it all, at least a little bit, and then Gillian will say or do something sweet and Gillian-ish, or she'll turn up looking like...  _that_ , and Kate's heart thumps in her chest as if she's fifteen and her crush has just spoken to her in the halls.

She gives herself a shake. She's not a teenager, she's a grown woman, here with the man she's loved for years, and however much she likes and is attracted to Gillian... she loves Gibbs.  _Grow up, Katie. You can't have your cake and eat it, too_.

(She knows she's an adult, because she's starting to sound exactly like her own mother.)


	3. Chapter 3

Gillian can't help comparing Gibbs as she remembers him being at first with Gibbs how he is now, and she's never felt so justified in meddling. Watching him smile and laugh, seeing him so relaxed and happy, she finds herself grinning along.

As soon as they got here, he was whipped away to meet and greet, and she knows it's the kind of thing he hates, but with Kate on his arm, every time she's spotted him, he's looked positively cheerful. She's seen him talking almost happily to people who, judging by the uniforms, are the kind of Navy bigwigs he usually finds tiresome in the extreme.

She doesn't doubt Kate still has her hands full making sure he doesn't offend someone out of sheer boredom, but purely having her by his side clearly puts him in a much better frame of mind. They drift in and out of sight, but the smile is there each time she catches a glimpse, and even when she actually speaks to them en route to yet another admiral, which Gibbs is obviously less than wild about, his grumpiness still can't spoil that soft look down at Kate, full of contentment and joy.

Gillian's honest enough to admit to herself she still misses the relationship that she and Kate built. Even if it started purely out of mutual frustration, it became... more. And she loves Cal, and she wouldn't give up what they have, but she has a stab of envy and a tiny bit of guilt when she sees Kate with Gibbs. It was only ever supposed to be comfort, solace, but maybe there's more to solace than she'd thought. It makes it both better and worse that she knows Kate's struggling too, though she's not sure if Kate realises exactly how much she cares, how much she aches. Part of her wants company in this particular boat, and another part of her hopes, for Kate's sake, that she's dealing better than Gillian, that she's getting over it, that maybe for her it was mostly the sex she missed. That she isn't still pining how Gillian is.

Now and then, she lets her mind wander, lets herself imagine a situation in which it wouldn't matter, in which it would be okay if she and Kate harboured deeper feelings for one another. But it seems so unlikely, there are so many variables that would have to be in their favour for it to work out, she can't actually allow herself to hope.

Then Cal comes up behind her and whispers, "All right, Foster?" in her ear, and she smiles as she turns around. Cal still makes her surname sound like an endearment, and it reminds her just how much she loves him, even when he's being, well,  _Cal_.

"Hello, trouble."

He grins happily at her. "Enjoying the party?"

She wrinkles her nose. "I've been to worse."

"Should get some booze down you, it's improving my night no end."

She rolls her eyes. "I think one of us should stay sober, or who knows what you might get up to? I know we're here strictly as guests, but there are people here who'll probably send business our way one day. Unless you decide to insult them while you're drunk, of course."

He scrunches up his face, and it's so silly, so little boy, so completely him. "Hate being practical."

"Just as well you have me then, isn't it?" she says, as she straightens out his tie and his collar. She's not really sure why she's bothering - she's done it already half a dozen times since they left the house, and it never lasts long. It's as if Cal has some kind of scruffiness field that won't let his clothing stay neat and tidy for more than forty-five minutes at any one time... and sometimes not for more than five minutes.

"Dunno what I'd do without you," he says softly when she's done. He looks at her in that way he has - wonder and amazement and confusion, as if he's still bemused to find himself in this position. "Hope I never have to find out."

"I hope you never have to find out too," she says, and grins at the bashful smile her honesty prompts.

He ducks his head, looks away. "So... you seen Kate and Gibbs lately?"

Anyone else would be fooled by his casual air, but Gill knows him too well and can see his nonchalance is shaky at best.

"They were off to talk with some admiral or another, I think."

Cal's shoulders drop almost imperceptibly. Relief, or at least mostly relief. She has a suspicion he's decidedly ambivalent about his attraction to Gibbs - isn't sure if he wants to spend more time with the man and figure out what the hell is going on, or if he wants to run away, cut all ties with NCIS, and pretend it was all just a big bad dream.

Gillian knows him well enough to be sure that the latter option isn't one that's long term viable, thank goodness. Cal's got too much curiosity (even in the face of something as baffling and unsettling as his crush on Gibbs) to hide from it forever, and besides that, he likes Kate and Gibbs too much, as well as being uncomfortably attracted to them both. He can be loyal to the point of idiocy sometimes, and she simply can't imagine him dropping their friendship, however much it confuses him.

"You okay?" She puts her hand up to his cheek, and he blinks slowly at her. Sometimes, just having her there to pull his focus seems to calm him down, let him go at life with a little less breakneck speed.

He catches her other hand in his and brings it up to his mouth to brush a kiss over her knuckles. It's an oddly courtly gesture from Cal, but at the same time it suits him surprisingly well. She laughs delightedly, and he smiles at having made her happy.

"I'm fine, love," he says warmly, and he genuinely seems to mean it.

He leans against the wall and pulls her with him, so they're side by side and watching the milling crowd. She leans her head on his shoulder, and they stand there for quite some time.

Eventually, Gillian spots Gibbs - he's really hard to miss in that outfit.

"Oh look, there they are. Guess that cute guy they're with is an admiral."

She looks at Cal, only to find he's got his face screwed up in doubt.

"What?"

"Cute?"

She looks back. Okay, cute might not be exactly the right word, but tall and sort of distinguished-looking. "He's attractive."

"He's got no hair."

"Well, you know what they say about bald men..."

"Huh." He looks at her sideways, a mischievous twinkle in his eye.

"What?"

"Just nice to know you're not immune to a man in uniform, Foster. Not entirely incorruptible, eh?"

She grins. "I could say the same about you." His reaction to Gibbs was... less than subtle.

He rolls his eyes, though his ears redden. "Cheeky madam."

Gillian raises her eyebrows, and he does have the grace to look a little abashed. She has the impression he doesn't know what to make of her amusement over the whole thing - and had forgotten, just for a second, that she'd seen him behaving like a teenager with a crush.

There's a moment in which she thinks he might actually say something, admit something, but it passes. He shakes off the self-consciousness which is so unusual on him, pushes away from the wall and holds out his hands, back to cheeky and mischievous. "Dance, Ginger?" He waggles his eyebrows. "More fun than watching all these people lie their arses off."

She reaches up to brush her fingers through his hair. He really does hate this kind of thing, and for good reason. She wonders if there's any way she can explain to Kate and Gibbs exactly how much it means that he said yes when they asked.

He leans into her touch like a cat, his eyelids dropping to half mast, and she laughs, taking his hand. "Come on then, let's dance."

Grinning again, he tugs her after him out into a relatively uncrowded spot on what would, at any decent party, be the dance floor, pulls her in close, and makes a happy noise when she tucks herself into his body.

His head comes to rest gently on top of hers and she smiles and closes her eyes. She can be his quiet place away from all the lies, and he can be hers. It's not sexy or even particularly romantic, it's not some big gesture of love, it's just... comfortable, peaceful. Secure.

And she thinks again that solace is a much bigger and better thing than she had ever realised.


	4. Chapter 4

Cal's kinda relieved that almost the second they got in here - before he'd even got his coat off - he turned around to discover Gibbs had been shuffled off to schmooze and be schmoozed. Between him and Gillian and Kate, Cal's pretty much stuffed, left wondering how a lowly moth ended up surrounded by all these spectacular butterflies, but with Gibbs needed and Kate happily serving as his social buffer (she's incredibly good at knowing when to head him off making some kind of unforgivable faux pas), Cal's been able to concentrate on Gill.

That's enough to frazzle his brain a little bit - how the hell did he end up with this woman? - but he's kinda sorta used to the fact that she tolerates his presence, and he's working on getting his brain round the idea she likes him and wants him by her side. And all of it is a lot easier when he doesn't also have to contend with the federal pinups that are Kate and Gibbs looking all... yummy.

He's temporarily lost Gillian (she muttered something about girl-time, and he decided to leave it well alone), and has spent a while nursing a beer and doing his best to ignore all the faces. There's way too much deception of all kinds at an event like this, from people pretending to have a good time right up to those who are telling enormous porkpies to others they're desperate to fool. He can't not notice, can't turn it off, and sometimes it's unbearably exhausting. He keeps asking himself why he agreed to come.

Of course, the simple answer is that he couldn't say no when Gibbs and Kate asked, and in truth if they asked again, he'd say yes again, because apparently he's that much of a fool. He sorta hopes they never figure out how much of a soft touch he is for the pair of them, or he's gonna be in deep shit. But he can't seem to make himself regret it, so he goes up to the bar to get himself another drink instead.

He's congratulating himself on not making a total plonker of himself yet when someone comes up beside him. He has a bad feeling, which is confirmed a few moments later when Gibbs speaks.

"Well, whaddya know, Lightman, you scrub up all right."

Cal blinks and opens his mouth to reply, but no words come out. He tries to ignore the heat rising predictably and inexorably on his face. (Really, it seems sort of unfair he has enough blood in the game to get a boner  _and_  a blush.) "Um. Thanks," he mutters eventually, looking at Gibbs sideways. "You too."

Gibbs' eyes are doing that mischievous twinkly thing, and Cal isn't sure if he should take it as a compliment/possible flirting, or if Gibbs is simply amused at how he's got Cal on the ropes here.

The man must know he looks like sex on a stick, right? And Cal doesn't dare hope his little crush - no, wait, it's just a man crush, okay? (He's not letting his genitalia get a vote any more) - well, whatever, Cal's not fool enough to think that Gibbs has stayed blissfully unaware all this time, so he doesn't trust that he's not getting teased a bit here. In an affectionate kind of way, of course, which doesn't help the whole crush situation even the tiniest bit.

Cal clears his throat and forces himself to look away, tells his dick to get a bloody reality check, and wills the bartender to hurry the fuck up. Maybe he should've added a shot to his drinks order.

On the downside, if he has a bit (or a lot) too much alcohol in his system, there's no telling what he'll do. On the upside, at least he'd have an excuse. Given the circumstances, if he's going to end up randomly trying to snog Gibbs silly (which right now seems horrifyingly possible), he'd like to be able to blame it on the booze. And at least he'd be able to talk. Cal Lightman, struck dumb; whoever woulda thought?

"Hold on, you got-" Gibbs grabs his arm, turns him, and Cal suddenly finds himself with Gibbs right up in his face, and gulps.  _What the..._ Gibbs is doing something with his tie, casually intimate, and Cal hardly dares breathe. Gibbs tugs at his collar, straightening him out the way Gillian does, then his hands are on Cal's shoulders as he inspects his work. "Much better."

"Thanks?"

Gibbs grins warmly. "Welcome."

There's a moment as they stand there looking at one another where Cal really honestly wonders if he can resist for an entire evening the almost overwhelming urge to grab Gibbs and plant one on him. Okay, so the beer was a terrible idea.

Then he hears the girls' voices, and lets out a breath he hadn't realised he was holding. He's not sure if it's disappointment or relief.

Gibbs taps him lightly, affectionately on the cheek, and finally lets go of him, then waves a greeting to Kate and Gill. For his part, Cal all but runs over to grab Gillian and kiss her instead. He doesn't even stop to wait for his beer.

She's startled, but responds happily enough. "You okay?" she asks quietly when they part.

He pulls a face. "Be fine. Probably."

Her smile is a little mischievous, but she takes both his hands and squeezes them gently, reassuringly. "Here if you need me."

He rolls his eyes at her, and her grin widens. "Why doesn't that sound very comforting, love?"

She winks. "Because you know me too well?" She pulls him closer, wraps his hands around her ribcage, then twines hers around his neck. "I love you," she points out.

"I love you, too."

"Then don't worry about the rest. We'll figure things out."

He's not entirely sure how he's supposed to 'figure things out' when he's dealing with quite so many unruly emotions, but at least him drooling all over Kate and Gibbs hasn't left her cross with him. On the whole, he'll take what he can get. He bends down and presses another kiss to her mouth, and nibbles her lower lip a bit in the way that makes her go all melty soft.

She thumps his arm even as she kisses him back, and he's pretty sure it means 'There's a time and a place,' but she also makes a delightful wobbly sound into his mouth and is still smiling when he pulls away, her eyes all dark and full of promise.

"We'll figure things out," she says again, more seriously this time, then grabs his hand and pulls him along behind her.

He sighs. About the only comfort he has is that he knows Gillian fancies Kate still. He doesn't think she's about to complain 'You fancy Kate's boyfriend!' but at least he has the 'Well, you fancy Gibbs' girlfriend!' rebuttal in hand, just in case.


	5. Chapter 5

"Hey, soldier."

Gibbs looks up and grins. Gillian's giving him that megawatt smile, and it's impossible not to meet it with one of his own. Gillian scrubs up pretty damn well too, though telling her that would not be nearly as amusing as telling Cal was. "Hey, beautiful." Okay, so he didn't quite manage to keep his counsel there, but it's true, and makes her face light up like the sun shining, so... it seems okay.

She sits down beside him, folds her hands in her lap and crosses her ankles. He almost wants to laugh at how unconsciously ladylike she can be sometimes, especially since he's seen her yell at Cal and tease her coworkers, and generally act a lot less mature than anyone seeing her now would ever imagine.

"Good evening?"

He smiles. "Better now."

"Charmer."

"Saying you're better company than Navy brass? You easily charmed or what, Gillian?"

She giggles. "Maybe you're just exceptionally charming."

He laughs aloud at that. "Doubt it." He's pretty pleased with himself for coaxing that giggle out of her, though. "Nice dress."

"Thank you. See, you can be charming."

He raises an eyebrow. "Maybe compared to Lightman."

That gets him a playful slap on the arm, although her laughter suggests she sort of agrees with him. "Cheeky."

"Think that must be what you were aiming for when you said 'charming'."

"Possibly."

They smile at one another for a moment, then Gibbs looks away, feeling unaccountably vulnerable.

"Have you seen my noisier half?"

He laughs again. "Not for a while. Last time I saw him, he was with you."

She's sitting close enough he can feel when she shrugs. "Oh well. I'm sure he'll turn up eventually. He always does."

For a while they sit quietly, watching the crowds. It's comfortable with Gillian. Most people feel the need to fill up the conversational space Gibbs isn't using. Sometimes that's really helpful, it's served him well in law enforcement, but when he's with friends... it's nice to spend time with someone who doesn't get uncomfortable with silence.

Gillian laughs suddenly, and points, and Gibbs grins when he sees where she's looking. Cal has somehow conspired to get Kate on the dance floor, despite the lack of actual, you know,  _music_ , and is apparently being his usual irreverent and amusing self, judging by how hard she's laughing.

Gibbs watches for a while, then surreptitiously turns his attention on Gillian, because it's so nice to see her face when she's looking at that funny little man she loves so much. Cal looks at her like she hung the moon, the stars, the sun, all the planets, probably most galaxies; she looks at him with less worship but with a quiet, amused adoration. It's rather lovely.

Gibbs doubts Cal often (if ever) sees this expression - he's too busy making her laugh or being a genius, generally being noisy and funny and overwhelming. Gibbs has a strong suspicion Cal's actually - consciously or not - afraid to slow down and look... afraid of what he might see, or not, in Gillian's eyes,

One of these days, Gibbs is gonna forcibly slow Cal down, and somehow catch Gillian at the exact right moment, and show Cal the way she looks at him. He doesn't think it'll cure all Cal's insecurities in one fell swoop, but he knows Cal is still borderline paranoid that Gill's gonna give up on him, and yeah... he just really needs to see this.

Gillian peers sidelong at him, and he grins ruefully. Of course she noticed. He was fooling himself to imagine she wouldn't.

"Just thinking Cal should get an eyeful of the way you look at him," he says, surprising himself a little with how upfront he's being.

She smiles that bewitching Gillian-smile and shrugs. "If he could ever slow down enough."

"One of these days, I'll make him."

She giggles. "You're very sweet." Then laughs harder, because he can't be called that without pulling faces. "Sorry, I forgot that's a bad word when you're a Marine." She runs a finger along his line of ribbons. "I promise I won't tell."

"'M not sweet."

She raises her eyebrows and cocks her head to one side, one hundred percent pure scepticism, and he subsides. It's not like it's possible to tell Gillian off; it would be like kicking an exceptionally adorable puppy. She's not really puppyish in other ways - that's Cal's department - but in this respect, she has most puppies beat.

"Your secret is safe with me," she says.

He growls. It's not gonna work on her, but it's the principle of the thing.

Predictably, Gill just laughs at him again, then she leans companionably into his shoulder as she looks back out at Cal and Kate. Gibbs is surprised and rather touched by the comfortable familiarity of her behaviour. Not everyone would try and be so casually affectionate with him; there are even fewer he'd allow to get away with it. Gillian treats it as a foregone conclusion, in such a way that Gibbs can't help taking it as a compliment.

It underlines a suspicion he's had for some while now. Gillian is... special.

If he hadn't seen them together, seen how well they mesh, seen how they make each other happy, he'd honestly be baffled how she ended up saddled with Cal. He likes Cal, a lot, but at first appraisal, if they'd already been together, Gibbs would've wondered exactly what Gillian saw in the man.

As it is, just as Gillian is undeniably an incredible person, she and Cal also undeniably... fit.

(And really, Gibbs is with Kate, so he's not exactly in a position to make waves about guys who get women they emphatically don't deserve.)

Of course, he's also got to know Cal. He now understands why Gillian would be interested in Cal in the first place, why she'd agree to leave a secure career to take a chance on Cal's madcap idea for a business that had to be explained to people before they could start selling their services. He even gets why she'd take a chance on Cal personally. Cal is a pain and can be annoying, a know it all, and really, a lot of other things, but he's also loyal and devoted and funny, smart as a whip, and so sharp he could cut himself.

Gibbs looks back out to where Kate and Cal are still dancing; if Gibbs is any judge (and even if he says so himself, he really is), Kate has given in gracefully, been teased out of most of her self-consciousness, and is enjoying the silliness of it. Gibbs is possibly a tiny bit impressed.

He may go cut in, in a bit - with one thing and another, he hasn't had nearly enough time this evening to spend with Kate without people he's supposed to be schmoozing getting in the way, and an excuse to hold her close and sway to nonexistent music sounds kinda heavenly - but for now, he's happy to sit back and watch her glow.


	6. Chapter 6

Gibbs has been quiet (even by his standards) all the way home, and when they get inside the house, Kate's freaked out enough to ask about it. "What's the matter?"

He blinks down at her as if she's pulled him out of a daydream. "What?"

"What's wrong?"

"Why would anythin' be wrong?"

She rolls her eyes. "You didn't say a word all the way home."

He blinks again. "I didn't?"

He seems so surprised, so completely unaware of his strange behaviour, that she can't help laughing, worry dissolving into amusement. "I mean, I know you're infamous for being monosyllabic, but that was extreme even for you."

"Sorry." He looks sheepish. "Was just... thinking."

"Penny for them?"

He looks as excited about that as Kate feels about root canals. "Uh."

"They were that bad?"

His expression turns troubled. "I was talking with Gillian."

"Yeah?"

He screws up his face. "She's very..."

Kate waits, but no more is forthcoming. "Why has thinking about Gillian made you look like you've just been told your dog died?"

"God, I don't know, I just..." He scrubs a hand over his face. "She was all... she's so..." He looks... embarrassed. Which is weird. "I kept sayin' stuff I didn't mean to let come outta my mouth," he finally adds, in a mumble, like he doesn't really want her to hear what he's saying.

When the penny drops, she can't help it - she laughs. "Oh, Jethro." He looks at her, all big sad puppy-dog eyes, and she pulls him down into a tender kiss. "You're an idiot."

"What?"

"Are you trying to tell me you found Gillian attractive tonight?"

He looks both surprised and deeply ashamed.

"You are an  _idiot_ ," she says again. "It's okay."

A frown. "How the hell is it 'okay'?"

Kate grins. It's sort of nice to be the mature voice of reason here. "Look, you're human. I'd judge you if you didn't find her attractive. Especially in that outfit."

He opens his mouth, then closes it again. Apparently he doesn't have an answer for that.

"I spent half my night trying not to ogle her. She always looks good, but tonight she was stunning. And she's... Gillian." Kate shrugs. "She's lovely. How could I blame you for having a moment?"

"I... I told her she was beautiful."

"She was. She is."

"But-" He looks deeply frustrated with his inability to express himself. "I shouldn't be saying stuff like that to someone else. To someone else's girl. To someone who's not you."

"You're not about to do anything about it, and nor am I. If you made her smile and you enjoyed spending time with her..."

"It - it's not the same."

"Why not? Good God, Gibbs, I slept with her, a lot, for longer than I've been sleeping with you. If anything, you should be mad at me for wanting to flirt." She pulls him down and plants a kiss on the end of his nose, which makes him grin despite himself. "It's okay," she says again.

"But... how-?"

He's definitely short on words. She decides to help him out.

"Let's put it this way: Are you planning on seducing her away from Cal, or leaving me because of her?"

"Of course not!" Kate doesn't need the lessons she's picked up from Cal and Gillian to see that he's angry, borderline offended, she'd even ask.

"Then we don't have a problem." She leans into his chest and wraps her arms around him as tightly as she can, squeezes him hard. "I love you. I trust you. Nothing else matters."

"It's okay?" He still doesn't sound convinced, but he's at least considering the idea; Kate will call that progress.

"I'm not going to pistol whip you every time you notice I'm not the only pretty girl in the world."

"Beautiful."

"What?" She looks up at him.

"You're not just pretty, Katie, you're beautiful."

She smiles, and possibly goes a little pink. It's not so much the compliment, it's his tone of voice and his expression. She can see how knowing all this stuff as well as Cal knows it could make life more difficult, but she loves being able to see the honesty and adoration in Gibbs' gaze so clearly. "Thank you. I love you."

"Love you too." He says it back a bit more readily these days. She'd like to think it's at least in part because he now truly believes that she means it.

"So, are we good?"

He smooths a piece of hair behind her ear. "We're good if you're good."

"I'm good, I promise. Seriously, Jethro. There's nothing to forgive, but if it makes you feel better, I'm forgiving it anyway. You're only human. Gillian's lovely, and gorgeous, and was wearing a dress that made my eyes pop out."

"Yeah?" His eyebrows shoot up toward his hairline. "Do I got competition?" There's a smirk pulling at one corner of his mouth, and she welcomes the return of his sense of humour even if it is at her expense.

"Mmmm, well... honestly?" She makes a big show of thinking about it, then goes up on tiptoe and drops a short, sweet kiss on his mouth. "No, you don't. Cut quite a dashing figure yourself," she points out, playing with the shiny brass buttons on his jacket. "You should wear this uniform more often."

He actually looks a little shy. "Don't get much reason to. Sorta meant for... you know, special events, parades, funerals..."

"Who said anything about wearing it outside the house?" She gives him a wicked grin.

It takes a moment, but then he grins back. "Oh yeah?"

She nods, widens her eyes to emphasise her point. "Oh, yeah. Very yeah."

"Like this look, huh?"

"Like it... love it... think you're pretty much edible in it..."

A deep, satisfied laugh is her reward for that one.

"I don't think I was the only one to notice, either."

"No?"

"Gillian said you looked very handsome." She winks. "And Cal sure appreciated it a heck of a lot."

Gibbs doesn't say anything, but he can't entirely squash his reaction. He looks both embarrassed and amused.

"I sort of felt sorry for him. He was one momentary lapse of concentration from humping your leg."

He outright laughs at that. "Now that ain't kind."

"True, though."

His lopsided smile and raised eyebrow say he agrees, even if he doesn't want to admit aloud that he has a very sincere admirer in Cal Lightman, and that he's perfectly aware of it.

"Anyway," she says. "Gillian is beautiful and Cal is adoring, but neither of them is here, so I think we should indulge in my original plan for when we got home."

"What was that?"

"Going upstairs and doing things that are wildly inappropriate for a man wearing such a distinguished uniform."

"Or for a pretty girl in a pretty dress?"

"Absolutely. Sound okay to you, Gunny?"

He chuckles. "Aye, Captain. Lead the way."

_~ fin ~_


End file.
